was the chief governing body of an important family or monastic complex in ancient

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. This name was borrowed for the administrative department of the

Shogunate , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

in feudal and medieval times.

History

The earliest usage of the term was found in the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

, referring to a governing body consisting of royalty and high-ranked (higher than ). Subsequently, during the

Kamakura , officially , is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 people per km2 over the tota ...

and

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

s, the primary executive branch of the

Bakufu , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

(office of the Shogunate) was called by this name. During the Kamakura Shogunate, the Mandokoro governed administration and finance. It was formerly called Kumonjo (, ), and the date when it was renamed is argued. There are two major proposed dates, 1191 or 1185. The first chief of the Mandokoro was Ōe no Hiromoto. Later, or occupied this position. The position of executive director, serving also as the treasurer, was held by the Nikaidō clan. During the Muromachi Shogunate, the Mandokoro was the office of finance and process on fiefs. Except in its earliest days, the position of chief of the Mandokoro was held by members of the Ise clan, starting in 1379.

As (), was also used as an honorific title referring to the wife of the (regent) or the ; these women had great political power and influence in their own right. For example, Kōdai-in, the wife of

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

, who held the rank of in 1586, was styled ' (), and his mother was styled ''

Ōmandokoro Ōmandokoro (大政所, 1516 – 29 August 1592) or Ōmandokoro Naka was the mother of the Japanese ruler Toyotomi Hideyoshi. She was also the mother of Asahi no kata, Tomo and Toyotomi Hidenaga. Biography Ōmandokoro is said to have been ...

'' (). During the Heian period, the wives of the were often called (, ), since their residence was normally placed in the northern complex of the palace.

References

Japanese historical terms Feudal Japan Japanese words and phrases {{Japan-hist-stub

History

See also

References